our trip to maui!

three weeks ago, we packed up our bags, boarded a plane, & landed in Maui! it was so, so fun to be there & my mama came along which was so tremendously helpful with Eloise & helped it feel like we were (at times) on an actual vacation! {because, let’s be honest, when you travel with kids, it is a family trip, NOT a vacation}!

this was Aaron’s first trip to Maui, & my mama & I haven’t been since I was 5 or 6, so it was basically new to all of us. we had heard that West Maui as a good location & decided to stay just north of Lahaina town. this was an excellent choice! while we didn’t visit much outside of West Maui, it was perfect for this trip & gave us a really good taste of what Maui had to offer.

before the trip, I did some due diligence & checked out the guidebook Maui Revealed. I am usually not one for guidebooks, but this one came highly recommended by more than one person, so we gave it a shot. it was really comprehensive & helpful with tons of tips. I took a lot of notes & we ended up using quite a few of the tips, so I would recommend it for anyone who is thinking about traveling to Maui. we also got lots of tips from our friends & family about things to do or places to see/eat/visit – thanks everyone!

we have really quickly learned that it is SO much easier to be away from home with Eloise if we have a house, meaning a separate bedroom for her & a kitchen. so we found this pretty great condo on Airbnb which had amazing ocean views, a great lanai, was super quiet, & was within a short driving distance to town.

okay, enough words. here are some lots of pictures from the trip, & then below I have some of our favorite spots!

{we took the light rail to the airport from Husky Stadium & that is Aaron with the car seat on his back!* // WA is insanely beautiful from the air // Eloise had a backpack full of new travel toys & we even got lucky enough to have the middle seat empty so she had her own seat! // but bedtime did not go as planned as Eloise did not want to sleep… two hours later Aaron finally got her to sleep}

*we rented all of the “baby gear” except for the car seat & I would highly recommend that if you are traveling with little ones. we used the Ergo for the airport which allowed us more hands to pull/carry our luggage, & then rented a Pack N Play, an umbrella stroller, a booster seat, & a beach tent. see below for more info on the rentals!

{the biggest banyan tree in the US is in Lahaina & it is awesome! // the ocean views from our condo were breathtaking // there were nice amenities on-site at our condo including a shuffleboard court. Eloise loved it!}

{our condo was just up the hill from Kaanapali Beach so we ventured down there one afternoon // Eloise mostly loved all of the fresh (& expensive!) fruit // ahh, those sunsets!}

{we hit up Kapalua Beach which was just north of our condo a few minutes & it was perfect! it was a pretty small beach, but we were able to set up our little tent & enjoy the beach in the shade. my mama & aaron went snorkeling, & saw some fish & a turtle, though it was a great snorkeling beach. Eloise had only ever been to the beach on the Oregon coast & was obsessed with it! she loved the sand & the waves & kept saying “more more” whenever a wave went out.}

{we had lots of food recommendations, but tried to eat out either just lunch or dinner each day. Local Boys Shave Ice in Lahaina (down by the banyan tree) was super good the first time we had it, & okay the second time. it’s actual shave ice (the ice, not the flavoring) was my favorite! // we also tried Ululani’s Shave Ice which was amazing. the syrups are all handmade from scratch & the mocha add-on on top was terrific! there are a few locations around the island, but the one in Lahaina was super convenient for us, though super packed! // and finally, Star Noodle came highly recommended & it did not disappoint! we went for lunch & ordered family style & everything was delish! we even got our malasada fix (which is a Portuguese donut) with caramel & chocolate dipping sauces.}

{Aaron & I were able to get out early one morning & go on a surfing date. it was SO fun! it was Aaron’s first time, & I hadn’t been surfing in years, so we took a lesson. the breaks were perfect on the south end of Lahaina town (Break Wall, I believe) for us rookies. we were SUPER sore for the next few days though!}

{one day we took a day trip east // we visited Baldwin Beach, had lunch in Paia, & drove thru Makawao (it was super cute, but Eloise had fallen asleep!)}

{Eloise & I got to wear our matching dresses & Salt Water sandals! // we had lots of shave ice on the trip. I had this genius idea on the trip: we still don’t let Eloise have any sugar, sweets, or juice, so whenever we ordered shave ice, we would also order the smallest size for Eloise with just the ice (no flavoring) & a spoon & she LOVED it! it was nice to feel like she was still a part of it without feeling like we were breaking our own rule. // there was this super low chair out on the lanai that Eloise liked to read in & play on. she loves being outside!}

{we did one short hike to the Nakalele Blowhole & it was pretty cool. the terrain down to the ocean was this crazy lava rock that looked like it was hit with acid. and the ocean was so beautiful!}

{we hit up Kapalua Beach for a second time & even though it was raining, we couldn’t complain! there was a gorgeous rainbow that appeared when we first got there, & it was warm rain that came in very short showers. plus, our awesome rental beach tent kept us dry & was the envy of the other beachgoers!}

{we hit up the swimming pool at the condo one afternoon & Eloise is pretty much a fan of the pool. she likes to sit on the steps & splash, & also spin around in the water & play “motor boat, motor boat” which she learned in swim lessons last year // Eloise had a great time with lots of the non-toys at the condo, including this wine box! // we had a few rough nights of sleeping where Eloise would just not go back to sleep & while we don’t ever bring her into our bed during the night at home, we make an exception on vacation. she spent a lot of time tossing & turning around, but finally would go to sleep with us, usually laying right on me!}

{on one of our last days we ventured to the Maui Ocean Center which is the local aquarium & it also did not disappoint! the exhibits were pretty good, especially the big shark tank & tube. we were able to catch the information show with the local diver in the tank with the sharks & the fish which was really, really cool!}

we had the absolute BEST time & it was so lovely to be on Maui. we tried not to be too “scheduled” & found a good balance between relaxing & hanging out, & playing tourist. Eloise really loved the time we were there & was a super good little traveler, despite the difficult plane ride over. she was up super early (4:30 AM) the first morning, but considering the three hour time change, it wasn’t too much of a surprise. the rest of the time she was up slightly earlier than her normal wake-up time, but she napped really well & slept decently at night. the biggest headache about being in a warm, tropical, & sunny place was making sure she was covered in enough sunscreen (yep, first world problems!) but she is pretty good about letting me smear white sunscreen all over her every two hours!

if you are planning on visiting Maui, this is what we LOVED (slash would recommend):

  • Lahaina town
  • Goofy Foot Surf School: even though it was just the two of us surfing, we opted not to do a private lesson. it was cheaper that way, plus we ended up being the only two in the lesson anyways!
  • Nakalele Blowhole hike: do the hike in from mile marker 38 and wear good shoes!
  • shave ice (yep, SHAVE ice – no “d”!): Local Boys Shave Ice (better ice) & Ululani’s Shave Ice (better flavorings)
  • Star Noodle: super good food, order family style, make a reservation, try the malasadas (hot!)!
  • baby rental gear: there are lots of rental companies on the island, but we used Nokaoi Baby Rentals and were really pleased. I would highly recommend getting the big family beach tent!
  • Kapalua Beach: a pretty small, family friendly beach. go early to get parking & avoid the crowd, or plan on parking on the side of the road & walking in.
  • Coconuts Fish Café in Kihei: we lunched here after the Aquarium and it was super delish!
  • Maui Ocean Center
  • drive to Paia and Makawao
  • Baldwin Beach
  • if you need a good pair of rubber flip-flops (called slippahs in Hawaii), go to Long’s Drugs (or Walgreen’s) and get a pair of Locals for less than $5
  • food is incredibly expensive on Maui (even in comparison to the other islands). eating in can sometimes cost as much as eating out, so keep that in mind, and we had trouble finding much organic produce. there is a Costco near the airport, but it’s still expensive and a lot of food! I would recommend packing snacks from home for the kids, & plan on spending $10 for a half gallon of organic whole milk!

Aloha Maui & a hui hou!

M

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eloise {month twenty-one}

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{lion: jellycat via Nordstrom // tank: babyGap // overalls: Zara (old)}

{month twenty-one} so I just instagrammed this picture of Eloise today before lunch & added the usual #twentymonths hashtag, but it wasn’t until I got a reminder on my phone to do her monthly photoshoot that I even realized it was the 10th! short version of the story: where did the month go?

as we have continued to suspect for the past few months, we still think Eloise is working on those two-year molars. though her dentist told us it wasn’t really common for toddlers to get these early, she was pretty early with all of her other teeth so it wouldn’t surprise me at all. there isn’t any sign of the teeth yet in her gums, but she has been sucking & chewing on her fingers like mad recently (so much so that I am sort of amazed I got this month’s picture without her hand in her mouth!). also, the past three or four nights, Eloise has been waking up crying & just wanting to cuddle (which is really unusual), & one of my mama friends just told me her daughter did the same thing right before her molars started cutting. poor kiddo! hopefully we will get thru these molars & be done with teething for a while!

while Eloise hasn’t seemed to grow much based on her wardrobe, she is definitely getting heavier (as you can see from her weight below she is probably 2 or 3 pounds heavier this month!). I don’t notice it much during the day when I am picking her up, but I do notice it when I have to get her up from her crib! it makes me miss those days when her mattress was up high & she was so little…

we are still using cloth diapers full-time & really liking it (as much as you can like diapers). we recently added Grovia Hybrid diapers (see the links below) to our stash after a recommendation from a few friends & starting to dislike the BumGenius Freetimes (the one with the two flap liners sewn in). I was really cautious about trying other types of cloth diapers at first since it was already pretty overwhelming, but at this point, I have a really good system down & I understand so much more about cloth, so I have been happily trying other diapers. with Grovia, the shell is reusable (if it doesn’t get wet or soiled) and the liners snap in & out; plus, it works as a swim diaper without the liner! and the awesome thing about Grovia is that we added an extra booster liner the other night & there was no leaking! we usually do a disposable at night since we could never get the BumGenius to not leak, so I am pretty excited! we aren’t planning on getting any more diapers for the stash until we have another baby (and we only got two new Grovia diapers), but even a few less disposables every week makes a difference.

Eloise is still such a chatterbox and is blowing us away with how much she says. she is really mimicking these days though, so we have to be careful what we say around her! she is much more into communicating verbally than with signs these days, but gets so frustrated if she doesn’t know a word for something or we don’t understand what she is saying. sometimes she will say something to me (and I have NO idea what it is) and then she will nod like she wants me to do the same because I understand, but I really don’t… it is frustrating and endearing at the same time!

singing is still a favorite thing as well as music. after being in Maui with Grammie & having lots of singing time in the back seat of the car, Eloise often requests “No More Monkeys Jumping on the Bed” which she does with an “oooo” (like a monkey sound) or shaking her finger & saying “no no no” (like “no more monkeys!) or pretending to hit her head (like “one fell off and bumped his head!). so cute! but if you start to sing a song that she doesn’t like, she will totally cut you off!

the past few months we have been really working on animal sounds (like I mentioned last month) but now I am switching gears to counting & colors. Eloise’s favorite number is two & she constantly repeats it! she seems to understand numbers but I think is a ways away from being able to recite them. when we say “can you say one?” she will say “two!” and then repeat any number except for one… good thing she is turning two soon! with colors, her favorites are blue, purple, and black, and if you ask her what color something is, 99% of the time she will tell you it is blue. on the other hand, if you ask her to pick out a specific colored object, she is usually right!

since it has been so nice & sunny & dry here the past few weeks, we have started using the dog door again for Sadie, much to Eloise’s delight! I think she was too young to remember it from last spring & summer since we had it closed all winter. and even though it is in the stairwell, Eloise doesn’t try to go look at it when she isn’t supposed to. but every time we go up and down the stairs, she yells “Sadie!” because she loves to see her go in & out the door. also, Eloise is obsessed with Sadie’s leash & taking Sadie on a walk or in the car with us. she loves to look over when she’s in her carseat & see Sadie sitting in the backseat with her. and just last night we gave Eloise the leash on our family walk before bedtime. she handled the leash so well & was so proud of herself for walking Sadie! it was the sweetest thing ever.

here’s a video from last night. part-way thru I say “Sadie whoa!” in which Sadie is supposed to stop walking, but instead she keeps walking forward & Eloise just starts saying “whoa whoa whoa!”

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and finally this month, I wanted to share a funny little thing that Eloise has started doing. on the weekends we usually sleep in a bit, but Aaron almost always gets up with Eloise and heads upstairs to start breakfast so that I get to stay in bed a bit longer & take my time getting up. lately though as soon as they are upstairs, Eloise will yell “Mama!” down the stairs to see if she can get me to yell something back. it is pretty funny. except when she keeps yelling “MAMA!” until I come up the stairs… oh toddlers!

{weight} 29 pounds.

{hair} dark (reddish) brown.

{teeth} 12 teeth plus four molars.

{eyes} dark brown.

{clothes}  18 month (growing out of), 18 to 24 months, 2T, and some 3T (though it’s really big still).

{diapers} full-time cloth {bum genius pocket, & elemental and most recently grovia hybrid with organic soaker pads} & honest company size 5 diapers at night with a bum genius diaper cover.

{feeding} during the day, three meals, morning snack, & afternoon snack. sippy cup of milk with every meal.

{likes} buckles, jumping, watching out the front window (dogs, kids, trucks), books, mama & papa’s cell phone, toys that squeak or rattle, singing & music, dancing, Sadie, standing, FaceTime, bathtime, her snack cup, shoes, mama’s (diaper) bag, clapping, putting things inside a bag or box, taking lids off of things, talking (Mama, Papa, quack quack), coloring, helping with anything & everything, when Papa comes home from work.

{dislikes} having something taken away from her, diaper changes, not eating when someone else is, being hungry, getting into the carseat, getting out of the carseat.

{nicknames} Bug{s}, Love Bug, Baby Bug, E, Wheezy, Kiddo, Love, Bugaboo, Ellie or Elle.

Happy twenty-one months Eloise!

M

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my weekend in pictures.

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{On Friday it was so sunny and beautiful that after we ran a few errands, we hit up the playground! Eloise enjoyed a snack and some kid-watching beforehand.}

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{Our weekend Greenlake walk was Saturday morning this week and it was lovely! We are so lucky to live so close to such a beautiful part of the city.}

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{Aaron hung our new curtains in the guest bedroom. Swoon!}

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{We had a friend and his sweet dog Winnie over on Saturday for dinner and Eloise was obsessed with Winnie! See the first time these two met here (scroll down to almost the bottom of the post!) But Sadie was not so much a fan of Winnie…}

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{Mother’s Day brunch at Toulouse Petite in Queen Anne with the Andersons. It was so yummy!}

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{The crew all dressed up for brunch! Love these two.}

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{I resumed my Sunday afternoon Pure Barre class after a very long hiatus and it was so great! I love starting the week with a great workout.}

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{And after dinner we hit up Molly Moon’s ice cream for a Mother’s Day treat! It was amazing and I am so glad I worked out before Aaron and I ate all of this!}

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{And guess what TJ’s had when I venture in there late this afternoon – peonies! YES! And now I will hit up TJ’s every week of peony season.}

This weekend was wonderful and we had such a good time! My Mother’s Day was so perfect thanks to Aaron and Eloise; we dressed up, brunched (with mimosas and amazing friends!), played Settlers of Catan, got ice cream, and Aaron did laundry, nap time, diaper changes and watched Eloise while I went to barre. A perfect day!

And a very Happy Mother’s Day to all of the mamas out there, especially my own mama (Grammie) and Aaron’s step-momma (Nana)!

How was your weekend?

M

friday I’m in love.

Welcome back Friday!

{one} The Everygirl: Overcoming the Fear of Not Being Good Enough.

Overcoming the Fear of Not Being Good Enough #theeverygirl

The Everygirl has been on my radar for quite some time & I regularly peruse the articles that are posted. It has a good mix of travel, fashion, life skills, and interviews that I usually find interesting. I came across this article – Overcoming the Fear of Not Being Good Enough – this week & it really rang true for me. As a long-time blogger, new small business owner and lifetime perfectionist, it can seem really daunting when everyone else seems to have it together!

{two} #charlottestrong

We got our #charlottestrong t-shirt yesterday & had to take a family selfie to share. Charlotte is scheduled for surgery early next week & we are sending all of our love. As she heads into surgery, and a set-back in her AFP counts, we just ask that you send your thoughts & prayers!

{three} Peony for President!

Peony

{via Farmgirl Flowers}

It is SO cliché, but peonies are my very FAVORITE flowers! And, it is peony season! I just planted three peonies in our backyard with hopes that one of them will bloom this year, and until then, I am lusting after this beautiful peony bouquet (that is sold out, not a surprise!) and stalking TJ’s until it starts carrying its infamous $6 peony bouquets! YES!

What are you loving this week?

M

Be sure to check out our new May Linky Party below!

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my weekend in pictures.

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{You know it’s spring when the Roosevelt High School marching band starts practicing in our neighborhood during the week! Eloise was so obsessed with those big kids. Our neighborhood is just the BEST!}

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{Eloise napping on Friday. How is that even comfortable? It hurts my neck just looking at it…}

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{Our rhodie is in full bloom and our neighbor finished the trellis on the top of our fence. The backyard is starting to become my new favorite place.}

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{Aaron brought a keyboard home for Eloise so that they can hack together!}

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{We headed out to Flower World in Snohomish County this morning, and oh my gosh, there are so many plants! We were a little overwhelmed, but after we found the map of the greenhouses (seriously!) we were on our way. Eloise loved the wagons.}

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{I think she had the best time of all of us!}

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{It is really terrible lighting, but I planted my first containers this afternoon for our front porch!  I am super excited for them to start growing. Happy Mother’s Day to me!}

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{We spent the end of our weekend down at Greenlake and had an awesome view of the lake (minus the cars!) along with pre-dinner drinks and nosh with Ben and Sarah. Such a beautiful city we live in!}

We had the best weekend! It was sunny and warm, and things got done, and we got to hang out together, and it was so fun! Even though I know we are going to get a cold spell again before June (it happens every year), these past few days have gotten me so excited about the summer! How was your weekend?

M

P.S. If you need a Mother’s Day gift, head over to The Petite Flag Shop and use MAMALOVE for 25% off! If I have orders by Tuesday, they should make it by the weekend!

friday I’m in love.

Welcome back Friday! Sorry I have been MIA the past week, but I unplugged while we were on Maui & it was awesome & much-needed!

{one} Non-aerosol spray sunscreen for babies.

{Babyganics Mineral Spray Sunscreen via Target}

From the time I became pregnant with Eloise, I have been a little, okay a lot, neurotic about sunscreen! Nearly all of the dry-touch and spray sunscreen was getting a bad rap for harmful ingredients, so I switched our household to all zinc-based sunscreen and we have been using it ever since. It has come a long way in the past few years, and I think I finally found a really great sunscreen for babies and toddlers: Babyganics Mineral-Based Sunscreen Spray. Because it is non-aerosol, I feel comfortable using it on Eloise (and I even spray it into my hand first and then rub it on her most of the time) and it isn’t super sticky or white. And since we were putting on sunscreen last week at least twice a day, I had lots of time using this product and still highly recommend it!

{two} Oh Joy: How Motherhood Has Changed Me.

how motherhood has changed me:

{via Oh Joy blog}

I have a great admiration for Joy who is the brainchild behind Oh Joy the blog and the brand. She is incredibly talented and has two adorable daughters! She just posted a great piece about how motherhood has changed her views, perspectives, and actions, and if you haven’t read it, go check it out!

{three} SuperMom Azaleas.

{via Proflowers}

Mother’s Day is just around the corner and there are lots of gift guides popping up on the interwebs. I have seen this cute face vase come up a few times and I love the whimsy of it! Also, if you need a gift idea for your mama, check out The Petite Flag Shop and use MAMALOVE for 25% off!

What are you loving this week?

M

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my weekend in pictures. 

  
{Eloise loves walking around in Aaron’s huge shoes! And she also doesn’t like wearing clothes these days, but we convinced her to wear a tee shirt!}

This weekend we did some yard work outside and enjoyed the best weather on Saturday – it was sunny and warm, but not too hot – and walked around the neighborhood. And then today was all chores for getting us and the house ready for vacation! 

Wish us luck on a plane ride over the Pacific with a squirmy toddler! We will be in Maui all week with my mama and are so excited for some vacation! I will be posting all week over on Instagram: mishacslower (and then probably doing a recap here once we get home)!

Aloha and have a great week! How was your weekend?

M

friday I’m in love.

Welcome back Friday!

{one}  ThredUp.

Per my annual spring cleaning regimen (ha!) I did abig, and much-needed, closet purge. It started last fall actually when I stopped nursing since at that point I felt like I could dress normally again (not for pregnancy or nursing-friendly) and I went thru my entire closet (okay, closets) and took out everything I hadn’t worn, wanted to wear, or wouldn’t wear again, and I put all of those things in our office closet. And so, because they weren’t in my every-day closet, they sat waiting for me to make a decision about what to do with them. We give our fair share of stuff away to the Goodwill (drop-off makes it so easy!) but some of these were really nice, brand-name clothes, so consignment felt like a better option. And after making a call to a local consignment store and having to make an appointment (with a toddler, no thank you!), I knew there must be a better way! Enter: ThredUp, an online consignment store. I know this sounds like an ad, but it isn’t, I have just been really happy with the service!

So, I requested a clean-out bag which was mailed to me within a couple of weeks, and then I loaded it up with my old (but in excellent condition!) clothes, and a pair of shoes. And I had the option to drop it off at a Fed-Ex location or schedule a USPS pick-up, and shockingly, I did the latter. And off it went! While it took a little while for me to hear back, I was pleasantly surprised by the updated information on when it was received and how long it would take for me to hear back. So most of my clothes were assessed at an up-front value, a few of them were responsibly donated (though you can pay shipping to have the unwanted clothes sent back to you), and three were set up as an actual consignment (and I will get 60 to 75% of the price it is sold for)! Sweet!

Okay, so one thing to share about this consignment service is that they are picky about the brands you send in and pretty much only want designer brands. My “big ticket items” were a J.Crew jacket, a Kate Spade trench, and a Marc Jacobs jacket, while the rest of my bag was mostly J.Crew, Ann Taylor, Gap, and some Nordstrom’s brands.

And, lastly, if you want to shop instead of consign, use the code 20FORYOU at check-out for 20% off your first order!

{two} Felt Garden.

Felt_Vegetabpe_Garden_For_Kids_DIY

{via Lia Griffith blog}

Eloise is age now where she is starting to role play and pretend, and it is so, so fun to see what she comes up with! Her kitchen is a big source of pretend, and even though she has some IKEA felt food, I think it would be fun to make her a little bounty of felt produce that she could plant and harvest from a garden (since we hope to next summer have raised beds!).

{three} Chambray Joggers.

{via Gap}

Okay, I didn’t intend for this to be a super fashion and shopping-heavy post, but it is my favorites, right? I just picked up these chambray jogger pants last week at the Gap and I am so excited about them (especially for the 4+ hour plane ride this weekend with a “lap infant” – ha!). As you probably know, I have not jumped on the athleisure bandwagon and don’t ever intend on doing so (IMHO your lululemon belongs only at barre class!). So, when joggers first came out, I sort of sighed in disbelief that women were wearing pajama bottoms as real pants… but it is better than leggings, right? Plus, when I picked them it, it was just the perfect storm of things: they were on sale (and are right now too!) plus, someone had ordered and returned my size to the store (trickly since Petites have to be ordered online!). Like it was meant to be…

What are you loving this week?

M

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photobooth fun.

Last Friday I got my haircut, which was sort of a big deal since I have been having the same person cut my hair since I was 15!, and Aaron and Eloise joined me. We had a fun evening down in South Lake Union (or SLU) after a gorgeous, sunny, and warm afternoon, and had dinner at an old favorite Cactus!

Anyways, Gary Manuel had a photobooth set up where Eloise and Aaron spent some time taking selfies, and I joined in on the fun afterwards! {And, you can’t really tell, but I cut off about 4 inches of hair – it feels SO much better!}

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So those pigtails, seriously, the best! And that is my old backpack from when I was a kid and Eloise is obsessed with it (I think it is the zipper)! It goes everywhere with us.

Happy Wednesday!

M

 

my weekend in pictures.

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{We went to the Zoo on Friday morning and got to see the jaguar up close!}

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{And we had a picnic lunch, though Eloise was more interested in the people and crow watching than actually eating anything. Plus, she managed to keep on a hat most of the day! That fedora kills me.}

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{And all of that sun and fun put her right to sleep, even though the drive home is only about 15 minutes. And sadly, she did not sleep one more minute in her crib during naptime…}

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{On Saturday morning we had a playdate with some of our PEPS friends and had breakfast at View Ridge Park. Eloise loved this bubble machine that her friend Linnea brought. I think we may have to get one for this summer!}

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{And after another playdate on Saturday afternoon, Eloise dug in the dirt with Aaron. We thoroughly enjoyed the nice weather on Saturday!}

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{The past two weekends we have done a long family walk on Sunday morning since the weather is nicer, and today we went around Greenlake. It was a little chilly, but sort of nice to not be baking in the sun yet. Sadie loved being near the lake, and while Eloise had a good time, she would have much rather run around instead of being in her stroller. But then we would still be walking around Greenlake at toddler-speed…}

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{And I decided I should probably buy some peony plants to get into the ground before peony season really kicks off next month! I have figured out why people really get into gardening since it is pretty fun and really rewarding to see all of your hard work, but man can it be expensive to get plants! We were holding off to re-plant our flower beds this spring (after the work last fall) but I think it is going to take a few seasons before we have everything bought and planted in the beds according to our design!}

It was a really fun weekend that felt like it was a good mix of catching up with friends and also getting things done (errands and around the house). The weather all week  has allowed us to be outside in the evenings before and after dinner, and all weekend which has been so nice and such a good change after having such a horribly wet winter! I know the warm and sunny weather won’t last until summer (since we always get cool again before our late summer weather really kicks in) but we are trying to enjoy every minute of this early spring! How was your weekend?

M